Ever wondered about someone you pass on the sidewalk, see in the grocery store, or heard mentioned in stories? This is our attempt to track those people down, and grill them, lightly.

Will you be my friend? Devon Kasler022713
AE1Capital City Weekly Ever wondered about someone you pass on the sidewalk, see in the grocery store, or heard mentioned in stories? This is our attempt to track those people down, and grill them, lightly.

He's nice and approachable like the Sesame Street resident, with long legs too and rather feathery golden hair. But the man has edge. He's a musician, and crooning is probably too gentle of a word for what he might produce; he probably kisses the stage with his knees a few times. He has a lot of knee.

Kasler grew up in Juneau, with three half-siblings. He describes his childhood as, "A bit hectic, without much structure." This, apparently, didn't leave him craving some form of traditional rigidity in his formative years.

"I dropped out of high school because I hated it," Kasler said. "I wasn't learning anything I wanted to learn, or that felt useful to learn. Just going through the whole high school experience was stupid."

His plan was to get his GED and then attend university classes, classes of his choosing. He received his GED - when he was 16,

"It was the easiest thing I've ever done," he said, but he started work instead of college.

He spent a year at Silverbow Bakery and gave Washington a try when he was 18 years old (he's now 19). That lasted four months. The people he was living with partied too much for his taste (Mick's losing out now).

"I'm not a social person or a partier," he said. "So I had to go back home."

He said it was hard to find a job, more because he was picky than because of a lack of opportunities. He found a dishwashing gig.

"Eight hours a day," he said. "I listened to music and everyone left me alone."

He was a frequenter of the High Tide Tattoo shop. The shop was looking for what he described as a "counter girl."

"I said, 'Well shoot man, I'm not a very pretty girl, but if you can't find anyone to help out, I'll do what I can.'"

He started work there in March 2012. After five months his work ethic paid off and he was offered a coveted apprenticeship position. As the position didn't pay, he picked up work at Heritage Coffee. This afforded him the ability to move out of his mother's house and into his own place with a friend in the Mendenhall Valley, where he currently lives.

His main interests are working at the tattoo shop and playing music.

"Ever since I was a kid, drawing was one of my hobbies," Kasler said. "I was the kid that was known for drawing dumb cartoons."

He started playing the guitar when he was 13 and hasn't stopped. He said one of his biggest goals is to be respectful.

"I require respect," he said. "I've gotten into trouble a lot. I got talked down to in high school and I would leave. It may be a problem with authority, but I'm totally respectful if I feel like I'm getting respect."

Kasler likes to dress well.

"I'm a nerd about fancy clothes," he said. "People make fun of me because I have expensive jeans. I just like nice things."

One thing he's not into is sports.

"I'm not an active person," Kasler said. "My friends are motivated to play soccer and ultimate (frisbee). I'm not involved in any team sports."

He enjoys helping people, and making them happy. Kasler's pretty content with the sphere he occupies in life right now, but ended the interview with this:

"It's a long way to the top if you want to rock and roll."

Amanda Compton is the staff writer for the Capital City Weekly. She can be reached at amanda.compton@capweek.com.